Justin Brookes

Professor Justin Brookes

Head of School

School of Biological Sciences

Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.


My major research field is the quality of source water for potable supply and river and lake ecology. I also lead a large research project on the treatment of reuse water using biofiltration. The importance of water to Australia and Internationally with the threat of climate change and a drying climate mean that my skills are in demand for research, consulting and educating the next generation of water scientists.

I have broad research interests in limnology and water treatment. Primary research focus is coupling between hydrodynamics, biology and water quality contaminants such as cyanobacteria and pathogens. Currently leads several large inter-institutional projects examining degradation of chemical contaminants of concern (endocrine disruptors, pharmaceuticals), carbon cycling in lakes and rivers and the ecology of the Coorong and Lower Lakes of the River Murray.

Collaboration
I have published journal articles with over seventy co-authors and one additional opinion piece with fifty authors. I lead several multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional projects related to environmental issues and the water industry.

I actively collaborate with CSIRO, The Australian Water Research Centre, SARDI Aquatic Sciences, Flinders University, The Centre for Water Research UWA, Griffith University, Griffith University. Internationally I am involved in research projects with The University of California, Santa Barbara, Univesity of Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, The Chinese Academy of Science Beijing, Waikato University, NZ and the TZW, Germany.

Research Grants

Date Project/No. Investigators Funding Body Amount (AUD)
  Hydrodynamic Distribution of Pathogens in Lakes and Reservoirs Justin Brookes, Mike Burch, Nicholas Ashbolt, Jason Antennuci AWWA Research foundation RFP 2752 $1,002,000
  Velocity profiling around the submerged aerators in the Torrens Lake Justin Brookes, George Ganf, David Lewis, Rudi Regel Torrens Catchment Water Management Board $4,252
  Carbon Sources in the Torrens Catchment Justin Brookes, George Ganf, Todd Wallace Torrens Catchment Water Management Board $10,511
  Impacts of de-stratification of reservoir waters on the character of natural organic matter and on the removal of NOM John van Leeuwen, Mike Burch, Justin Brookes, Alan Wade The CRC for Water Quality and Treatment $184,950
  Assessment and evaluation of changes in water quality in the Patawalonga Catchment Justin Brookes, John Howard Torrens Catchment Water Management Board $6,330.50
  Implications of Murray Mouth closure and/or restriction on water quality Justin Brookes Murray Darling Division of the Department of Water Resources $3000
  Reservoir Management for Control and Degradation of Algal Toxins  Justin Brookes, Mark O'Donohue, Mike Burch

AWWARF
South East Queensland Water Corporation
CRC for Water Quality and Treatment
Veolia

$1,667,057
  Raw Water Quality Objectives for Reservoirs in the Torrens Catchment Water Management Board's Operational Area Justin Brookes, Amber Lang, Thorsten Mosich, and John Howard Torrens Catchment Water Management Board $16,000
  Evaluation of Water Quality Changes at various sites in the Torrens and Patawalonga Catchments Justin Brookes and John Howard Torrens Catchment Water Management Board $15,658
  Flow requirements and resource delivery to the Lower Lakes and Northern Coorong Justin Brookes and Sebastien Lamontagne Land and Water Australia
SA Water
$941,255
  Water resources in the Maralinga Tjarutja Lands David Lewis and Justin Brookes Alinytjara Wilurara Natural Resources Management Board $120,000
  Development of monitoring methodologies to assess the condition of water dependent ecosystems David Lewis and Justin Brookes Alinytjara Wilurara Natural Resources Management Board $65,000
  Managing stormwater and reducing fish kills in the Patawalonga Qifeng Ye and Justin Brookes   $40,000
  CLLAMM Ecology - Flow requirements of the Coorong, Lower lakes and Murray Mouth  Mike Geddes, Justin Brookes, Anthony Cheshire, Jason Tanner, Peter Fairweather, David Paton CSIRO Water for a Healthy Country Flagship $2.2m
  Ecological Case for a Flow Regulator on Chowilla Creek SA Justin Brookes, Darren Baldwin, George Ganf, Keith Walker and Brenton Zampatti Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation $18,820
  Implications of the drought for blue-green algal blooms in the River murray, South Australia, Summer 2006-2007 Justin Brookes and Mike Burch SA Water $6000
  Ecological response to watering trials on Chowilla Floodplain, 2005-2006 Kane Aldridge, Brian Deegan, Jason Nicol, Mike Burchand Justin Brookes Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation $22,000
  Integrated Models and Guidance Manual for Reservoir Management (2005-2007) Justin Brookes CRC for Water Quality and Treatment $146,828
  The Ecology of Lake George (2007) Qi Feng Ye, Justin Brookes Centre for NRM $430,000
  The risk of black water events and cyanobacteria in Chowilla under flow regulation (2007)  Justin Brookes, Mike Burch, Todd Wallace, Darren Baldwin Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation $46,765
  Sediment oxygen demand and nutrient release in Lake George, SE Australia Justin Brookes, Kane Aldridge SE Drainage Board $15,000
  Sediment nutrient flux in the River Murray under extreme low flows Justin Brookes SA Water $10,000
  Scoping a River Murray Model Justin Brookes SA MDB NRM Board $30,000
  Expanding markets for reuse water by innovative treatment (2007) Justin Brookes WSAA
Melbourne Water
SA Water
United Water
Power and Water
Ecowise 
AusIndustry
$600,000
  Iron and Manganese flux in the River Murray and the threat to drinking water offtakes Justin Brookes SA Water $15,000
  Lower River Murray Hydrodynamic and Water Quality Model Justin Brookes and Matthew Hipsey SA Water $470,000
  Flow Ready : Ecosystem science based strategies for the recovery of the Lower Lakes  Justin Brookes and collaborators

National Flagship Collaboration
MDBC
SA Water security & technical group

$4.5m
  Lower Lakes Water Quality Monitoring Kane Aldridge and Justin Brookes  Murray Darling Basin NRM Board $282,000
  • Current Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)

    Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
    2022 Co-Supervisor Effects of drought and climate change on the water quality of river Murray-Darling Basin Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Dilanka Niroshan Athukorala Athukoralalage
    2022 Principal Supervisor The distribution and movement of the critically endangered sawfish Pristis pristis Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Tyler Noel Dornan
    2021 Principal Supervisor The influence of winds and currents of sediment dynamics and water quality in the Coorong, South Australia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Daniel Chilton
    2020 Principal Supervisor Emerging Cyanobacteria Issue and Novel Control Options Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Nur Diyana Kamal Azlan
    2020 Principal Supervisor Microbial dark matter: linking structure, functional genetics and bioremediation potential of microbial communities in a degraded hypersaline estuary. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Christopher Clement Keneally
  • Past Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)

    Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
    2017 - 2020 Principal Supervisor Himalayan Forests: Resource for Rural Livelihood, Massive Carbon Sink and Indicators of Changing Climate Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Tshewang Dorji
    2015 - 2018 Principal Supervisor The role of phytoplankton as pre-cursors for disinfection by-product formation upon chlorination Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Adam John Tomlinson
    2013 - 2018 Principal Supervisor Food web dynamics in the benthic habitat of a groundwater-fed, freshwater pond Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Yang Liu
    2013 - 2017 Principal Supervisor Responses in Aquatic Ecosystem Metabolism to Managed Inundation of a Regulated Dryland River Floodplain Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Sanjina Upadhyay
    2012 - 2017 Principal Supervisor Impacts of Climate Change and Nutrients on Phytoplankton, Especially on Cyanobacteria Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Chaturangi Wickramaratne
    2012 - 2019 Co-Supervisor Factors Affecting Cadmium Uptake and Distribution in Barley Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Ms Merrine Thomas
    2010 - 2014 Principal Supervisor Patterns and processes in zooplankton and water quality across the Chowilla Floodplain during a large flood Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Deborah Jane Furst
    2009 - 2013 Principal Supervisor Evaluating the effectiveness of various control and water treatment processes on the membrane integrity and toxin fate of cyanobacteria Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Jiajia Fan
    2008 - 2012 Principal Supervisor Sediment Resuspension and Water Quality During Declining Water Levels in a Shallow Lake: A Case Study of Lake Alexandrina South Australia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Dominic Skinner
    2008 - 2014 Principal Supervisor The Influence of Salinity on Various Life Stages of Ruppia tuberosa and implications for its distribution in the Coorong, South Australia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Dae Heui Kim
    2007 - 2011 Co-Supervisor Spatial and Temporal Features of Hydrodynamics and Biogeochemistry in Myponga Reservoir, South Australia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Wai Chan
    2007 - 2011 Co-Supervisor Nutrient Retention Capacity of a Constructed Wetland in the Cox Creek Sub-Catchment of the Mt Bold Reservoir, South Australia Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Nor Azman Kasan
    2006 - 2006 Co-Supervisor Adsorption and Biological Filtration of Microcystins Master of Engineering Science Master Full Time Miss Haixiang Wang
    2004 - 2007 Co-Supervisor Dynamics of Microbial Pollution in Aquatic Systems Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Matthew Richard Hipsey
    2002 - 2008 Co-Supervisor Impacts of reservoir storage on natural organic matter and its treatment by conventional treatment processes Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Leon Van Der Linden
    2002 - 2006 Co-Supervisor Composition and Bioavailability of DOC across a Rural-Urban Gradient Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Todd Wallace
    2002 - 2005 Co-Supervisor Phosphorus Retention and Metabolism: Indicators of sStream Deterioration Across a Rural-Urban Gradient? Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Kane Aldridge
    1999 - 2003 Co-Supervisor Phytoplankton and turbulence at selected scales Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Rudi Regel
  • Position: Head of School
  • Phone: 83133747
  • Email: justin.brookes@adelaide.edu.au
  • Fax: 83136222
  • Campus: North Terrace
  • Building: Benham, floor G
  • Org Unit: School of Biological Sciences

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